'Provincial Saddam' Goes, Finally

by Ahmed Ali and Dahr Jamail

BAQUBA - The surprise removal of the Diyala police chief has brought new hope
of a more secure future.

The decision by members of the ruling council of Diyala governorate to discharge
provincial police chief Ghanim al-Quraishi brought celebrations in its wake.
In Baquba, 25 mi. northeast of Baghdad and capital of Diyala province, Quraishi
has long been a controversial figure.

"Police chief Ghanim al-Quraishi gave orders to organize the fighting
in this district [Hwaider] very secretly," a policeman in the 2nd battalion
told IPS on the condition of anonymity. "The 2nd battalion of Iraqi police
moved to Hwaider, whose people witnessed severe military clashes between the
Mahdi Army and police."

Quraishi has been accused of supporting the U.S.-and-Iranian-backed Badr militia,
which has clashed with Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militia, as
well as the U.S.-backed Sahwa forces, which are dominated by Sunni Muslims.

"A big verbal quarrel took place earlier [in the governor's office] between
al-Quraishi, who is a Badr member, and followers of Sadr," a second policeman,
also speaking on the condition of anonymity, told IPS. "The Sadrists accused
Quraishi of targeting the Mahdi."

And so the majority of people in Baquba, whether they are sympathetic to the
Sahwa, the Mahdi Army, or to non-affiliated Iraqi security forces, are happy
to see the removal of Quraishi.

After the announcement was first made Aug. 11, neither Iraqi Prime Minister
Nouri al-Maliki nor the Ministry of Interior Affairs acted on the council's
recommendation. People were told by the Ministry of Interior Affairs that Quraishi
continued as chief of police regardless of the council's decision.

The next day, Aug. 12, several policemen led by Quraishi demonstrated outside
the building of the ruling council and insulted members who had supported his
expulsion.

The orchestrated demonstration was filmed by a local cameraman, who sent a
tape to Prime Minister Maliki in Baghdad. It was then that Maliki ordered the
discharge of Quraishi. Ministry of Interior Affairs spokesman Abdul-Kareem
Khalaf was named acting police chief.

About the same time as the demonstration, a suicide bomber attacked the convoy
of the governor of Diyala, Raad Rasheed, in Baquba. The governor escaped unharmed
but at least one civilian was killed. Iraqi officials immediately imposed a
curfew over the city that lasted until Wednesday morning.

Later Tuesday night, about 8 p.m., Quraishi surrendered his responsibilities
and left office.

People of Baquba, Shias and Sunnis together, congratulated one another on
the removal of a "post-occupation dictator." Quraishi, a Shia, had
his own militia called the "Khirnabat men."

Quraishi's convoys consisted of 120 fighters as his protection group and 20
armored vehicles. Few could challenge his authority, not even the governor.

Quraishi, who was a general in Saddam Hussein's military, was backed by the
Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council (SIIC), the most powerful Shia group in the Baghdad
government.

"The second Saddam has gone," a trader who referred to himself as
Abu Ali told IPS. "We look forward to better times."